New Zealand men's national basketball team

New Zealand

FIBA ranking	18th
Joined FIBA	1951
FIBA zone	FIBA Oceania
National federation	Basketball New Zealand
Coach	Nenad Vucinic
Nickname(s)	Tall Blacks
Olympic Games
Appearances	2
Medals	None
FIBA World Cup
Appearances	3
Medals	None
Oceania Championships
Appearances	19
Medals	Gold: 1999, 2001, 2009 Silver: 1971, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2003, 2005, 2007
Home Away

The New Zealand national basketball team represents New Zealand in international basketball competitions. It is nicknamed the Tall Blacks, derived from the name of New Zealand's Rugby union team, the All Blacks.

History

The Tall Blacks competed at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and finished with a 1-5 record, their only win coming against Angola in the playoff for eleventh.

In 2001, they defeated Australia in a three-game series to qualify for the 2002 FIBA World Championship in Indianapolis, United States. At the tournament they finished fourth, after beating Puerto Rico in the quarter-finals before losses to Serbia and Montenegro and Germany. Tall Blacks captain Pero Cameron was the only non-NBA player named to the all-tournament team in Indianapolis.

The Tall Blacks qualified for the 2004 Athens Olympics but again finished with a 1-5 record and lost to Australia in the playoff for ninth place. Their most noted moment was on the 7th day of the games, when they defeated reigning World Champion Serbia and Montenegro 90-87.

2006 FIBA World Championships

At the 2006 FIBA World Championship, the Tall Blacks were not to repeat their fourth-place finish from 2002. After an 0–3 start, the Tall Blacks rallied into the Second Round with two straight wins to close out the group stage. However, they would fall in the round of 16 to defending Olympic gold medalists Argentina, 79-62. After that disappointment, Tab Baldwin resigned as the coach of the Tall Blacks and was replaced by Nenad Vučinić, his long time assistant coach.

Haka

The Tall Blacks perform a traditional Haka (Māori challenge) before every game.

Olympic Games record

• 2000: 11th
• 2004: 10th

FIBA World Championship record

• 1986 FIBA World Championship: 21st
• 2002 FIBA World Championship: 4th
• 2006 FIBA World Championship: 16th
• 2010 FIBA World Championship: 12th

Commonwealth Games record

• 2006 Commonwealth Games: Runners-up

William Jones Cup record

• 2000 William Jones Cup: Champions

Notable players

Probably the most well-known former New Zealand Tall Black player in the National Basketball Association is former Portland Trailblazers forward Sean Marks, who is currently out of a contract. Another New Zealand player, former University of Wisconsin star Kirk Penney, briefly played in the NBA, and later played with top European teams Maccabi Tel Aviv and Žalgiris, but now plays with Baloncesto Fuenlabrada in Spain after being released by the New Zealand Breakers. In past generations players such as Stan Hill and Glen Denham, were well revered and respected players who were the face of New Zealand Basketball.

• Pero Cameron - 2002 FIBA World Championship All-Tournament Team
• Glen Denham
• Stan Hill
• Sean Marks - National Basketball Association player
• Kirk Penney - National Basketball Association player

2011 FIBA Oceania Championship Roster

New Zealand National Basketball Team roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr. PG 4 Lindsay Tait 29 – (1982-01-08)January 8, 1982 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) Wellington Saints PG 5 Michael Fitchett 28 – (1982-09-20)September 20, 1982 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) Nelson Giants SG 6 Kirk Penney (C) 30 – (1980-11-23)November 23, 1980 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) Baloncesto Fuenlabrada PF 7 Mika Vukona 29 – (1982-05-13)May 13, 1982 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) New Zealand Breakers SG 8 Corey Webster 22 – (1988-11-29)November 29, 1988 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) New Zealand Breakers PG 9 Mark Dickel 34 – (1976-12-21)December 21, 1976 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) Southland Sharks SF 10 Thomas Abercrombie 24 – (1987-07-05)July 5, 1987 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) New Zealand Breakers C 11 Alex Pledger 24 – (1987-03-27)March 27, 1987 2.13 m (7 ft 0 in) New Zealand Breakers PF 12 BJ Anthony 23 – (1988-07-20)July 20, 1988 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) New Zealand Breakers PF 13 Casey Frank 33 – (1977-10-23)October 23, 1977 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Wellington Saints SF 14 Leon Henry 25 – (1985-10-14)October 14, 1985 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) New Zealand Breakers C 15 Robert Loe 20 – (1991-08-05)August 5, 1991 2.11 m (6 ft 11 in) Saint Louis University	Head coach Nenad Vučinić Assistant coach(es) Chris Tupu Pero Cameron Physiotherapist Anousith Bouapphone General manager Claire Dallison Legend (C) Team captain Club field describes current pro club

Depth Chart

Pos.	Starter	Bench	Bench	Inactive
C	Alex Pledger	Robert Loe
PF	Mika Vukona	Casey Frank	Benny Anthony
SF	Thomas Abercrombie	Leon Henry
SG	Kirk Penney	Corey Webster
PG	Lindsay Tait	Michael Fitchett	Mark Dickel

This squad competed at the 2011 Boris Stankovic Cup in China. They played 3 games against difficult opposition, China, Russia and Angola. After going down to Russia in the first game by just 3 points, the Tall Blacks quickly put that behind them to smash China in their second game which led to a good win against a strong Angolan team. The Tall Blacks came up against a strong Russian team in the final, but the Russians were no match for Tall Blacks star shooting guard Kirk Penney as he dropped 30 points to give the Tall Blacks the win and the gold medal for 2011.

Competitions

Performance at Oceania Championship

Year	Position	Host
1971	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1971
1975	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1975
1978	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1978
1979	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1979
1981	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1981
1983	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1983
1985	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1985
1987	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1987
1989	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1989
1991	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1991
1993	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1993
1995	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1995
1997	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 1997
1999	1	FIBA Oceania Championship 1999
2001	1	FIBA Oceania Championship 2001
2003	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 2003
2005	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 2005
2007	2	FIBA Oceania Championship 2007
2009	1	FIBA Oceania Championship 2009

Rosters

1986 World Championship: finished 21st among 24 teams

Gilbert Gordon, Peter Pokai, Stan Hill, Neil Stephens, Dave Edmonds, Ian Webb, Dave Mason, Tony Smith, Colin Crampton, Frank Mulvihill, Glen Denham, John Rademakers (Coach: Robert Bishop)

2000 Olympic Games: finished 11th among 12 teams

Sean Marks, Pero Cameron, Mark Dickel, Phill Jones, Kirk Penney, Robert Hickey, Nenad Vučinić, Tony Rampton, Paul Henare, Brad Riley, Ralph Lattimore, Peter Pokai (Coach: Keith Mair)

2002 World Championship: finished 4th among 16 teams

Sean Marks, Pero Cameron, Mark Dickel, Phill Jones, Kirk Penney, Robert Hickey, Dillon Boucher, Damon Rampton, Ed Book, Paul Henare, Paora Winitana, Judd Flavell (Coach: Tab Baldwin)

2004 Olympic Games: finished 10th among 12 teams

Sean Marks, Mark Dickel, Phill Jones, Pero Cameron, Kirk Penney, Dillon Boucher, Ed Book, Paul Henare, Paora Winitana, Tony Rampton, Aaron Olson, Craig Bradshaw (Coach: Tab Baldwin)

2006 World Championship: finished 16th among 24 teams

Kirk Penney, Pero Cameron, Phill Jones, Mark Dickel, Casey Frank, Paul Henare, Dillon Boucher, Paora Winitana, Tony Rampton, Craig Bradshaw, Aaron Olson, Mika Vukona (Coach: Tab Baldwin)

2010 World Championship: finished 12th among 24 teams

Thomas Abercrombie, Benny Anthony, Craig Bradshaw, Pero Cameron, Michael Fitchett, Casey Frank, Phill Jones, Jeremy Kench, Kirk Penney, Alex Pledger, Lindsay Tait, Mika Vukona (Coach: Nenad Vučinić)

External links

• Basketball New Zealand's home page